Kendrick Lamar's "Control" Verse Wasn't A Jab At The Kings Of New York

After his collaboration with Big Sean caused such an uproar, Lamar felt the need to clarify his verse.

Kendrick Lamar has no beef with any of the “kings of New York” and that wasn’t even what his somewhat controversial verse on Big Sean’s Control was even about, the rapper himself says in an upcoming interview with Power 106. Lamar says that he did not expect his contribution to the Big Sean track to attract that much attention, but to be fair with so many names dropped in there, it’s no wonder the media took the bait and started looking for the rift between Lamar and his fellow East Coasters. The inflammatory line – or one of them anyway – goes: ”I got love for you all but I'm tryna murder you n****s”

Hear an excerpt from the interview below.

That’s only after Lamar raps in an earlier verse: “I'm the king of New York/ King of the Coast, one hand, I juggle them both” Nevertheless, Lamar says that he never actually hailed himself as the “king of New York”

And that, in fact, the people who needed to get his meaning, did. "The irony of that line is that the people who actually understood it and got it were the actual kings of New York, you know, me sitting down with them this past week, and them understanding, he said.

Lamar is climbing to the top, but he doesn't want to step on any toes.

“It’s not actually about being the king of whatever coast, it's about leaving a mark as great as Biggie, as great as Pac."

Those still sound like some pretty grand ambitions, but apparently, the fledgling rapper isn’t planning to step on any toes to get there.

"I think the ones that really took it out of context was the people that want to grab an opportunity off the hype of the record, rather than actually tuning in and listening and knowing how hungry I am," Lamar added. "A lot of people think it's about talent, that's where they get it wrong. I'm saying I'm the most hungry. I respect the legends in the game, I respect the people that done it before me, the people that lost their lives over this. Because of what they laid down, I'm gonna try to go harder, breathe it and live it — that's the point of the whole verse."